The King at Disneyland

No, not that King...I'm referring to Wayne King. In this June 1968 photo, Wayne is shown playing at the Carnation Plaza Gardens.



Taped to the back of this publicity shot was his obituary:

Big band leader Wayne King, called the "waltz king" of the late 1920s and early 1930s died Tuesday night. He was 84.

The alto saxophonist, a longtime Phoenix area resident, developed his fondness for the waltz during his dance group's regular engagement at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. His theme became The Waltz You Saved For Me.

In the early '30s, King's sound became widely associated with a cosmetics line manufactured at home by a brother and sister. The two hired King's band to play for a weekly radio show pushing their product and paid the group $500 per show.

The Lady Esther Serenade became one of the most popular shows on radio. Sales figures for the costmetic line soared and King was paid $15,000 a week.

The show was most popular with matrons who used makeup generously and responded with swoons to King's lush romantic music, interspersed with poetry readings.

Among the singers who appeared with King's band were Bob Eberly and Buddy Clark.

Besides Wayne King, the Carnation Plaza Gardens were a musical venue for Frank Sinatra, Jr.:



Bill Elliott:



The Osmonds:



Lionel Hampton:



Benny Goodman:



Stan Kenton:



Count Basie:



Who did you see play at The Gardens?

See more vintage Disneyland Plaza Gardens photos on my Plaza Gardens web page.

Disneyland Diary, 1964

1964 ADDITIONS

• COLUMBIA ("below decks" addition re-created quarters of 18th century American seamen) — Frontierland



• THE JUNGLE CRUISE showcased the "Trapped Safari" and other additions (including the African Veldt region with lions, giraffes, zebras, jackals, wildebeests, hyenas and antelope) — Adventureland



HIGHLIGHTS

A sellout crowd of 19,000 celebrated New Year's Eve at Disneyland.

"Spring Fling" was again the highlight of Easter Week.

More than 50,000 seniors and their dates from 130 high schools attended four all-night Grad Parties in June



Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Count Basie and Wayne King starred in a giant five-night Big Band Festival.

Summer entertainment included weekly Hootenannies and appearances by Spike Jones, Perez Prado and Harry James with their orchestras.

Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, Sharkey Bonano, Sweet Emma Barrett and Benn Pollack starred in the fifth "Disneyland at Disneyland."

Floats from 25 nations and more than 3,000 persons took part in the "Christmas in Many Lands" parade.

The "Parade of Toys" was a daily attraction during Christmas Time.



Disneyland's Community Service Awards program honored 15 county organizations with cash awards totaling $13,000. The Outstanding Award was won by the Volunteer Bureau of Newport Beach.

FAMOUS GUESTS

• Crown Prince Harald of Norway (February)
• 30 United Nations Ambassadors (February)
• Princess Chumbolt and Dhani of Thailand (February)
• Prince William of Gloucester, England (February)
• Lord Mayor Hansen of Copenhagen (March)
• Gov. Nelson Rockefeller of New York (May)
• Princess Abitya of Thailand (June)
• Prime Minister of Bjarni Benediktsson of Iceland (August)
• Other guests included ambassadors, legislators and cabinet officials from Ceylon, Denmark, Chile, Nepal, Mexico, the Arab states, Brazil, Sierra Leone, Naples, Argentina, England, Tunisia, Chad, Japan, Venezuela and Korea.

See more vintage & current Disneyland photos on my Disneyland web pages.